3. Readings and Textbooks

Statement:

The key to having accessible textbooks is to identify them early. Conversion takes time! The law states that all students should be able to access their textbooks at the same time, that a book be in a format the student can use, and the accessible book is as close to the original as possible.

When choosing a textbook, discuss the accessibility with the publisher or representative. Since you (and, thus, the university) selects the textbook, the legal responsibility and liability to make it accessible is on us, not on the publisher. However, the publishing industry will move to develop accessible versions more routinely as faculty insist the publishers do so. Ideally, the publisher should have an accessible version of your textbook available to provide to students upon request.

This category includes not only course textbooks but journal articles, other provided readings, OER materials, and e-texts. Remember if you add materials after the course starts, those materials cannot be disseminated to the class until they are accessible by all students enrolled in the course.

Questions:

Will you be using a new textbook? Does the publisher produce an accessible version? If not, have you provided a copy of the textbook to the university unit that converts textbooks by the time they specify for conversion to be completed at the start of the semester? Have you done the same for all the readings for the course?